Getting Ready For a Busy Farm Season

As a team we have been very busy analyzing last years results and planning for our 2019 farm season and now we are just weeks away from welcoming our thousands of volunteers back to the farm.  If you are interested in coordinating a group visit we are currently scheduling for visits in July and beyond. It’s as simple as visiting our volunteer web page and filling out and submitting a Group Leader Interest Form.  The demand for volunteer time at CHP continues to outpace our calendar space so get your requests in early in order to secure a spot for our 2019 farming season.  We hope to see you on the farm sometime soon.

Know of a college student looking for a great summer internship?  There are still positions available for our Summer Sustainable Farming Internship working primarily at our North Grafton farms.  Please help us get the word out to any student interested in learning more about local hunger relief, non-profit operations, farming and volunteer organizing.  It’s a great opportunity to do hands on learning with one of the areas leading non-profit organizations and a great way for a student to spend a summer outdoors on our beautiful farms.   

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Volunteer of the Month: Greenhouse Crew

Every year as we welcome volunteers back to the farm to help us plant our fields we receive comments about the healthy plants that we are planting.  We are proud of the fact that we start everything we grow from seed here on our farms. These seedlings in turn produce the hundreds of thousands of pounds of fresh locally grown produce that is donated out to our community annually.  We watch, encourage and cheer the plants through many stages of growth and are always excited to see the bounty that they produce. Mother nature is truly an amazing force to watch through the seasons and we feel lucky to have a front row seat.

All of this amazing bounty would not be possible without the help of a dedicated Greenhouse Crew that helps us prepare all of these plants for our growing season.  For the past seven weeks this crew has done the detailed, repetitive work of placing small seeds in our planting trays to start our plants. Our greenhouses are now carpets of bright green sprouts growing at different stages as the march towards outdoor planting continues thanks to this team of volunteers.  So as we begin our season outside in just a few short weeks we need to look back and thank our Greenhouse Crew for their part in beginning our year. Please join us in thanking and congratulating our Greenhouse Crew for starting the season off and setting in place the work to be done by thousands of volunteers in the coming months.  We appreciate each and every one of them and applaud them for a job well done!

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Adopt a Row or a Tree This Spring

Our greenhouse is filled to the brim with seedlings ready for adoption!

Adopt today to support their care for the 2019 growing season. Chose from Broccoli, Cabbage, Collard greens, Cucumbers, Eggplant, Okra, Peppers, Summer Squash, Sweet Potatoes, Tomatoes, Winter Squash, or Zucchini.  Or adopt one of these trees: Braeburn, Cortland, Empire, Fuji, Gala, Golden Delicious, Honey Crisp, McIntosh, Macoun, Mutsu, Red Delicious or, new this year, Peaches!

Support our 266 rows of crops and care for 3,660 apple trees by Adopting-a-Row or a Tree this spring!  When you adopt you allow us to care for your crop from fertilizing, watering and harvesting, then on to donation to someone in need on your behalf.

Donations of $250 or more will receive recognition at the farms for the duration of the growing season. Your support will go so much further than our fields. The average row yields over 2,900 servings of produce for donation each year and a single apple tree can over produce 700 apples – all for hunger relief.

By adopting, you make a difference in the lives of your neighbors. Your donation helps to put these fresh fruits and vegetables into the hands and homes of individuals and families who need it most. Together we are making a significant impact on hunger relief in our communities.

Donate today, and thank you for supporting local hunger relief.

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Save the Date for Plantapalooza 2019!

Spring is finally here and that means it is time for our annual plant sale fundraiser, Plantapalooza, to be held Saturday, May 18^th from 7:30am – 12:00pm at 37 Wheeler Road in North Grafton, MA (rain or shine). The first 1,000 attendees receive a free 4-pack of tomato plants!

Come visit our farm to buy all of the annuals, perennials, herbs, fruits and vegetables you need to build a beautiful garden this season! We will have a large variety of heirloom tomatoes, native species, and herbs to spice up your garden. Our volunteer plant experts will assist you with your questions and help you find the perfect selection of plants to thrive in your yard.

While at Plantapalooza, make sure to stop by the CHP tent to learn more about out the work we do in the community. Community Harvest Project is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization and all of the proceeds support our mission of creating a healthy and engaged community through volunteer farming and nutrition education.

RSVP here to let us know we’ll see you on the 18th!

Interested in volunteering at Plantapalooza? Contact wayne@community-harvest.org.

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What’s Cooking: Cauliflower Tacos

We always strive to make fun recipes in cooking classes, but the success of these surprised even us. Kids loved making their own taco seasoning, and then using it to spice this super-flavorful taco filling. Use this taco seasoning recipe as a baseline, and then adjust to your own tastes.

This cauliflower can also be used in burritos, burrito bowls, quesadillas, sandwiches, pizza, and whatever else you think it would be good on!

May classes are filling up so sign up now, and check out the full summer schedule:

Broccoli Head Chefs (9-12 year olds)

Rethink Your Drink – Thursday, May 2nd, 2019, 4-6pm

Celery Sous Chefs (5-8 year olds)

Scrumptious Smoothies – Monday, May 6th, 2019, 4-5pm

Scrumptious Smoothies – Wednesday, May 8th, 2019, 4:30-5:30pm

The full schedule is here.

Taco Roasted Cauliflower

• 1 head of cauliflower
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon taco seasoning (recipe below)
• 1 teaspoon salt

Taco seasoning:

• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• ½ teaspoon oregano
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• Optional: ½ teaspoon chili powder

To make taco seasoning: mix all spices in a bowl or jar.

To make cauliflower: Preheat the oven to 425F. Cut the cauliflower into ½ inch florets. On a large baking sheet toss the cauliflower in oil, taco seasoning, and salt. Split the cauliflower between 2 baking sheets. Roast for 15 minutes, then toss, and roast for 10 minutes more until browning at the edges.

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